Re: motor starter
"One-liners" that over-simplify a technical subject have some entertainment value, but do little to help educate those who have asked questions.
As some of the others have already stated, overload relays do a fine job of protecting motor windings against overheating damage due to overloading,
when applied properly.
How many installers ever read the instructions for relay adjustment/heater selection, and in particular the fine print referring to motor service factor.
And then there are the maintenance people (and unfortunately, some electricians) who think that the remedy for a tripped overload relay is to jack up the setting dial, or install higher rated heaters.
When overload protection is correctly installed, the overcurrent device, whether it be fuse or breaker, only has to protect the complete circuit against short circuit/ground fault conditions. Either will do the job equally well if applied properly.
For "non-standard" installations,
follow the motor manufacturers recommendations.
In many of the motor burn-out situations that I have investigated,
the installation simply was not done properly.
svaurez - To answer your question, if the motor branch circuit is properly protected by the circuit breaker, the combination starter was not required, however, it may have been given to you because a disconnect was required at the starter location, due to it's location in relation to the breaker panel.
Ed
[ April 01, 2003, 07:15 PM: Message edited by: Ed MacLaren ]